TNUPodcast

Kickstarters

We had artists, Jeff West and Trey McCoy, of Art Dimes on with us for episode 84 to talk about a brilliant 12 year old they are helping to create a comic book with! Ozzy Passin had an idea for his own comic book, Stand Wars, and Jeff and Trey are helping with bringing the art to life for his vision. Stand Wars is about three kids who come up with an idea to start a lemonade stand in order to raise money to enter a video game tournament. Everything doesn’t go as planned when they have to deal with bullies and other obstacles.

They went live with their kickstarter this past week and they are already a THIRD of the way to their goal! We cannot wait to see this kids dream come true!

We have two game designers on the podcast, so they jumped right into the pro’s and con’s of this board game. First is that it is awesome they got the rights to the Armored Core video game to create a board game. The video is great because it shows the layout of the game and we are curious if the footage is from previous games or if they made it themselves, either way, impressive.

We noticed this group has a broken link for their Facebook page on the kickstarter. Once you find it though, one of the concerns we had about rules are currently posted on their Facebook and that is pretty helpful.

We have questions about licensing, if the design will change, and just how simple it is. We do like that they have backed 12 projects already. This is the first kickstarter we have seen with lofty backer amounts. $75 gets you a core set and it just goes up from there. The ultimate bundle is gone, and the ultimate bundle extension pack only has a few left.

Their goal was $75,000 and they are currently exceeding that at $239,845. They are projected at almost $1,000,000. Will that bring about any upgrades? We think it needs lasers!!

As we re-iterate in each episode, as a owner of a kickstarter it is always good to support another kickstarter and be part of the community.

Ep. 8 Utah Kickstarter is based out of Salt Lake City and has already WELL Surpassed its goal of $20,000. The Fireflies Ear Budsare “truly wire-free.” This seems to be a very well developed technology. There is nothing worse than getting tangled in a bunch of headphone cords and the Fireflies seem to be the answer! The kickstarter page is well laid out, gives a great over view of the technology that is being used, and shows what is included such as a recharging station, silicone bud tips, and wings for your ears.

We liked that they offered a $1 support level as well as an early bird package, which looks like it was extended and has lots of interest. We do wonder about tech support on this item for those that have backed it and receive one as a backer.

With a goal of $20,000 and already backed at $424,060 with 15 days still to go, we do expect to see a buyer/investor pick up the Fireflies Earbuds and put them in stores in the future.

As we re-iterate in each episode, as a owner of a kickstarter it is always good to support another kickstarter and be part of the community.

Ep.7We found a Utah kickstarter that was immediately worth backing! Who doesn’t love dogs, right?

Having a heavy dog leash, especially in the summer, weighing your poor pup down is just awful. We found this great kickstarter based out of Salt Lake by Kloudline.com. Marketed as the “world’s lightest dog leash” we couldn’t agree more that a product like this is a MUST for dog owners. It comes in two different lengths and has an option of a traffic handle if you need to be closer to your dog, you know a better grip cause they are slippery little buggers!

We love Kickstarters that offer their backers an “early bird special.” For $8 the Kloudline offered a leash, which sold out! Great job! With a goal of $2,250 they are already WAY beyond target for this light weight dog leash at $5,695. We foresee this being popular and a great option for dog owners.

Not only can this leash offer your dog better comfort, it can also pull your Prius if you need!

As we re-iterate in each episode, as a owner of a kickstarter it is always good to support another kickstarter and be part of the community.

Ep. 6 we found a kickstarter with a GREAT presentation… but we did find some flaws in the Tactical Signaling Phone case by CeroTactical. We think that the video is great and it is a total positive that it is short and gets to the point.. oh and we must mention it is a totally dance-able soundtrack. The kickstarter page is laid out nice and simple. It is neat to see a case with the hook and loop on it (aka velcro) because that is nothing anyone has been before. We like that they offer a reward level that is a “high five” because not everyone wants the product but may want to back the kickstarter. Each reward level offers anywhere from a patch to a package with multiple cases for you and your friends.

Their goal is $13,000 and they are currently at $2,124.

We were a little concerned it won’t get backed because it isn’t directly marketed towards a very specific audience (military or outdoorsy clientele) even though there is a little bit of mention of why they created the phone case the way they did because of specific gear they observed. We are also concerned because technology sizes are changing and people are constantly upgrading and maybe that is a reason it isn’t being backed as quickly as other projects we have watched.

Good Luck guys!

As we re-iterate in each episode, as a owner of a kickstarter it is always good to support another kickstarter and be part of the community.

Joel Pack, is a local recording artist to Utah. Joel also runs Rigby Road studios. His kickstarter is clever and very down to earth. Joel lost all of his previous music rights to a bad studio deal and kickstarter is his way to put to press a new album for his fans. Joel has also offered a great set of rewards for the pledges, as much as to offer an in house performance for the 2nd highest pledge of $300 or more. (sounds like a lot of fun for the 2 backers of that pledge) 10 of the 13 songs for the album are already written and read to be mastered. Joel has a goal of $2,000 and he has surpassed that with $2,187. Good Luck Joel!

The 2nd kickstarter we thought was going to be goofy, but as we watched the video all of us decided it was pretty freaking cool. Jake Fuller of Webbing Works, is the mind behind this, not so normal, minimalist wallet! As we watched the video we thought, this is just like every other one, however as soon as the cord is pulled and the flint is revealed… basically it’s survivalist magic! He has great backer rewards, even a $1 pledge for people that “just want to help.” His goal was $1,000 and he has greatly surpassed it with $4,311! This would be great for your friends and family that like to hike or be outdoors that don’t want to carry a thick wallet and may need to make a fire.

Oh! And it comes with a knife!

As we re-iterate in each episode, as a owner of a kickstarter it is always good to support another kickstarter and be part of the community.

Ep.4 we voice our views on velcro… Velks is a company created by brothers Shae and Holden Russell. Their goal: to create velcro shoes for the modern man. Not only does this company offer fun and colorful velcro shoes, they also have a fancy dress shoe that you would never know was closed by velcro. Their kickstarter page was well laid out and it seemed that they had good pledge packages

Their goal was $20,000 and unfortunately they only made it to $7,267. Good news is, if you go to their website you can still purchase a pair of Velks, which leads us to believe that this kickstarter may have been for getting them in mass production or to create future designs.

Who says velcro shoes are just for kids!!

As we re-iterate in each episode, as a owner of a kickstarter it is always good to support another kickstarter and be part of the community.

Ep.3 we talk about a kickstarter from Beeson Games: Block Forest. The kickstarter is based out of Riverton, Utah. The developer is interested in building games for major app stores. This kickstarter had a small start up and will most likely meet their goal plus more.

The synopsis says: Roll through an endless maze of cubes as you explore. Avoid enemies and build up your score! Developed by a 12 year old.

With each level you can get your own app, your own desktop version, a hackable version, and even a co-creator level.

This is a stellar 12 year old! Way to go kid. We wish you well with your new app game,Block Forest

As we re-iterate in each episode, as a owner of a kickstarter it is always good to support another kickstarter and be part of the community.

In Ep.2 this week we reviewed the MUV kickstarter, an adaptable water filter that gives you clean water wherever your adventure leads, created by Daniel Beck of Salt Lake City. From the looks of this kickstarter, this company Renovo Water, has been working on prototypes for quite some time. This page has a lot of information, we’re wondering if it is too much? MUV is definitely thorough in explaining the build process and what each filter includes. Each pledge level gave backers a different amount of extra equipment and refills to help make the filter last. A cool note about this kickstarter, for pledges over $85 they donated a filter to Water is Life foundation.

They did make their goal with $65,097 from a $30,000 goal.

As we re-iterate in each episode, as a owner of a kickstarter it is always good to support another kickstarter and be part of the community.

In Ep.1 we discuss Salt City Strangers. The Salt City Strangers is a Utah comic book that is created by Chris Hoffman and features many local artists throughout each issue such as Mark Avo, Josh Butterfield, and Jeremy Gates, Ian Johnston, and more. Follow the adventures of Utah super-heros. With their 5th issue in production because it just finished meeting its kickstarter goal, you can now follow the adventures of GoldenSpike and The Gull 5 times over!

The Gull

Follow them on Facebook @ Salt City Strangersfor new issues and live event appearances and check out their Website HERE.